Fort Frederica National Monument

Infobox_protected_area
name = Fort Frederica National Monument
iucn_category = V
nrhp_type = hd


caption =
locator_x = 247
locator_y = 258
location = St. Simons Island, Georgia, USA
nearest_city = Brunswick, Georgia
lat_degrees = 31
lat_minutes = 13
lat_seconds = 26
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 81
long_minutes = 23
long_seconds = 36
long_direction = W
area = 241.42 acres (0.97 km²)
established = May 26, 1936
visitation_num = 316,611
visitation_year = 2006
governing_body = National Park Service

Fort Frederica National Monument, on St. Simons Island, Georgia, preserves the archaeological remnants of a fort and town built by James Oglethorpe between 1736 and 1748 to protect the southern boundary of the British colony of Georgia from Spanish raids. [ [http://www.doi.gov/ocl/2004/HR1113.htm para.5, Testimony of NPS Deputy Director A.Durand Jones regarding HR. 1113.] accessed Sept.3,2008] About 630 British troups were stationed at the fort. A town of up to about 500 residents existed outside the fort. The town was named Frederica, after Frederick, Prince of Wales, son of King George II.

History

In the early 18th century, the land lying between British South Carolina and Spanish Florida was known as the Debatable Land. Today's state of Georgia was then the center of a centuries-old imperial conflict between Spain and Britain. Fort Frederica was established in 1736 by colonists from England, Scotland, and the Germanic states to support this endeavor. Frederica was named for Frederick, Prince of Wales, (1707 - 1751) the name was feminized to distinguish it from Fort Frederick in South Carolina.

In the 1742 Battles of Bloody Marsh and Gully Hole Creek, forces under Oglethorpe successfully repulsed Spanish attempts to retake St. Simons Island. Afterwards the Spanish no longer threatened the colony, so in 1749 the garrison at Frederica was disbanded. The town fell into economic decline and by 1755 it was mostly abandoned. The town survived a fire in 1758, but it existed for only a few more years. [ [http://www.doi.gov/ocl/2004/HR1113.htm para.6] ]

Fort Frederica was authorized as a National Monument on May 26, 1936. [ [http://www.doi.gov/ocl/2004/HR1113.htm para.7] ] Starting in 1947, the National Park Service and the Ft. Frederica Association sponsored a series of archaeological investigations at the Frederica site. Using information from 18th century maps and journals as a guideline, archaeologists unearthed sections of the fort and town. By matching the archaeological data to the historical documents, these archaeologists have provided a glimpse into Frederica's past. As an historic area under the National Park Service, the National Monument was administratively listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966. Fort Frederica is open to the public.

Gallery

Related sites

* Battle of Bloody Marsh
* Battle of Gully Hole Creek
* Castillo de San Marcos National Monument
* Fort Caroline National Memorial
* Fort King George
* Fort Matanzas National Monument
* Fort Morris State Historic Site
* Wormsloe Historic Site

Footnotes

References

* "The National Parks: Index 2001–2003". Washington: U.S. Department of the Interior.

External links

* Official NPS website: [http://www.nps.gov/fofr/ Fort Frederica National Monument]
* [http://www.nps.gov/applications/parks/fofr/ppdocuments/OctNovDec05Web.pdf Archeology at Fort Frederica National Monument]
* [http://www.nps.gov/history/NR/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/31frederica/31frederica.htm "“Frederica: An 18th-Century Planned Community”", a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan]